Page 31 of The Funnel to You

“How?” I finally manage to pull out of my empty brain.

He just smiles back at me and asks me what I am working on this afternoon. And we get to it. I start working on more research for the Colorado Beauty Brands I am working with. I decided I wanted to create a bit of a collaboration with local brands and creators to have a network to connect with and we are going to work together on the October Women’s Health Initiative. There’s a lot that is going to go into it so I’ve been talking about business plans, pitches, social media campaigns, new product launches, collaborations, events, and blog posts. It’s extensive, but the overall goal is going to be incredible. And hopefully, we will bring awareness to local creators and brands as well as funds for local initiatives.

An hour into our work sesh, my watch buzzes to remind me to move around. Fine. I walk to the bathroom and then come back to fill up my water bottle. As I sit back down, Matt is also walking back to the table. He has a refill for me and a bagel. It has been a while since I’ve eaten so I guess it’s a good thing he remembers to feed me. I sometimes forget to take care of myself. Okay, more than sometimes. And he knows that.

“I kind of figured you would be ready to eat something.” He says to me as I start breaking the bagel into smaller pieces so I can eat without making a mess, “and the coffee is half-caf for this one but they had some of the creamer you liked up at the bar so I added that. How much have you gotten done so far with your list?” He takes a sip of his drink, which is probably not coffee at this point, then pulls out his notebook.

He likes to take notes while I talk through things and think out loud so he can help me find the areas I may still be missing or follow up questions. We learned quickly that I work better if I can talk through a project fully out loud before he interjects any questions or suggestions. And if I don’t have to worry about catching every thought on paper, even better.

We spend the next several hours working on the initiative together and make a good way through the list of the project. Everything is at least outlined and lists have been made. Goals have been drawn up and initial messages have been sent to the brands, companies, creators, and local areas that I would like to be a part of for the give back portion of the campaign. This is going to be extensive, and if it works, hopefully it stays around for longer than the month of October.

The next weeks are filled with lunch dates, coffee meetings, and weekend hikes. We work on content planning together and then have our own work hours outside of those meetings too. Before long, it’s time to start the fall promotions and reach outs. Christmas is fast approaching (at least when it comes to marketing) so fall has been in the works for a while.

September brings me lots of work at Home Depot with new store and product promotions, layout changes, and district meetings, so I am not able to spend much time with Matt just as us. We text and have a few moments together during our meetings or on walks after I get off of work. But I find myself craving to be under his body again. It’s been weeks since our hike and while we’ve had some pretty passionate make out sessions, there just hasn’t been the opportunity for more.

The first week of October brings cooler weather, but not much change in foliage. That’s one downside of Colorado. The leaves only change for a week or two – and usually just yellow thanks to all of the Aspen trees. Going up to Estes is a yearly plan and this year, I am going with Matt and Carter and Kylie. We have planned to get a cabin for one night so we can get some content done, but also just have a relaxing day enjoying the leaves and just being tourists for the day. Yes, even as semi-locals. There’s just something about the fudge you can get up in the mountains.

But it’s not the weekend yet. It’s Monday. And I have to go to work. I seriously can’t wait until I can turn in my notice. It’s getting harder and harder to show up here every day. My numbers are steadily growing online. But the bigger part that has been in the works – the Women’s Health Initiative – that has been taking up a lot of my time, and I seriously love how it’s coming together. Our big fundraiser campaign kicks off this weekend online. I have been pleasantly surprised at how many brands have jumped in to support this.

We’ve gotten donations from many companies for local resource centers in the form of actual products and a few of the bigger companies have even done some grant donations. It amazes me how fast it has come together and the right people have jumped in. A few other influencers have also joined to do something similar for their communities.

Part of the push this month is “pink every day.” Not just in wearing pink, but supporting a woman owned business every day. The campaign is already trending on multiple platforms and Matt has hinted that he is working on a media release, but he hasn’t filled me in on much of that yet.

Compiling the list of all the brands we could support this month was amazing! We started putting up posts in August asking for people to nominate their favorite brands and we had over one hundred submitted! I got to reach out to most of them personally to connect with the owners and main content creators if they have had a chance to hire out already. And even those that aren’t going to be featured this month on our channels will be working with us in some capacity. Our blog is full of posts talking about the brands. So many interviews have taken place, samples have been tried, reviews have been shared, donations have been distributed. I am so overwhelmed with how amazing it has been.

And I got to do it. With Ashley. With Matt. We did this! My income hasn’t changed much in the last few months, but the fulfillment in bringing awareness to a cause that I am passionate about and helping so many women owned businesses grow this month has been so incredible. Some of these brands just needed a little more visibility to really take off.

Another reason why I just really don’t want to wear this orange apron anymore. I’m not able to do as much while I am here. Matt has really helped by pulling together information for me so I can just sit down and do the reach outs when I get home from work. But I know I am not putting my whole heart and energy into this project because my time and attention has to be split. And I feel like he is acting as my personal assistant as well as the expert right now. Which just isn’t fair to him.

Tuesday afternoon I am practically dragging when I get to the coffee shop to meet with Matt. I’m in a simple pink floral top and leggings today along with my pink lipstick and some cute pink earrings. The content scheduled for this week is highlighting women owned skincare brands and I’m loving the products I’ve gotten to try already. And I’ve been able to share several of them with Ashley, Kylie, and Tilly. We’ve been chatting with the Ulta employee quite a bit and she is enjoying being a part of things from her perspective as a “broke college student.” It’s helping us make sure we are featuring products for every budget and need throughout this campaign.

It’s no surprise Matt has a drink for me waiting at the table when I get there.

“What’s my surprise today?” I ask him as I sit down and start getting things out of my bag.

“Spicy dirty chai. Figured you would want something warm with a bit of a caffeine kick to it. It’s not as spicy as the place you go to in Fort Collins, but they do a good one here. I got one for myself too.” Matt passes me my drink and I gladly take in the smell and the warmth of the cup.

“Have you been up to Estes for an overnight before?” I ask Matt. I haven’t either but I want to make sure we are having some non-work conversation. We try to split our time together between work and personal topics. That way, we are getting to know each other better outside of those work labels while still making good use of our time together.

“I went when I was little with one of my friends’ families. His family rents a cabin up there twice a year for a week each time and I got to go once. It was nice to take a break from school for a bit and it was gorgeous up there. And the uninterrupted video game time wasn’t half bad either.” He smirks at me a bit.

“I don’t think I’ve had a chance to meet any of your friends yet. Maybe we should set up something for later this month – maybe for Halloween?”

He thinks on it for a moment. “Yeah, we can probably set something up. It will be at the end of the campaign and we can keep it lowkey at my house if you want. That way we keep the guest list small and not too many new faces.”

I love that he remembers my social anxiety. Although, it’s getting easier to go places when I know he will be by my side. He keeps me steady. He’s my comfort in all of the crazy changes that have already happened this year, and I seriously don’t know if I would have made it this far without him.

We get back to work and I pencil something in to chat with the girls about a party at the end of the month – lowkey, fun, and maybe a movie to finish off the night. I wouldn’t say no to cuddles on the couch and another foot rub.

“Do you have a time in mind that you want to leave on Saturday to head up to Estes?” I ask him. I want to plan ahead so I am not rushed with packing and can touch base with Kylie and Carter when I get home after we finish up here.

After a moment of thinking it through he responds, “I think if we leave around ten it would be good. That way we can check in at the cabin at noon and get settled before we wander a bit and get some dinner. And then we don’t have to check out until two on Sunday. I was able to get us some extra hours on each end of the reservation so we could sleep in a bit or wander around town some more without paying for parking.”

“You really do think of everything.”

Chapter Twenty

Matt

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